Today was my first trip to the farmers’ market this summer. The weather did NOT cooperate, however. Mist and a cold wind fought my bike (and my motivation) the whole way, but I made it there and back with some awesome bounty. Check out those strawberries! The spiky, long things are garlic scapes, which are the stalks that grow from the tops of garlic bulbs. We use them like scallions or in pesto.

Cayuga Pure Organics began putting their wares in bulk buckets a few weeks (months?) ago, and the system seems to be working well to scoop your own. Here is also a pile of lovely peaches.

The market today was overwhelmed by TONS of tomatoes. We saw . . . → Read More: Market Day!]]> We went to the greenmarket today with our friends Brian and Mary (and their baby daughter, Ellie). We only have a few pictures, but here they are.

Cayuga Pure Organics began putting their wares in bulk buckets a few weeks (months?) ago, and the system seems to be working well to scoop your own. Here is also a pile of lovely peaches.

The market today was overwhelmed by TONS of tomatoes. We saw San Marzanos (although I didn’t get a picture), and a HUGE variety of beefsteak, heirloom, and cherry tomatoes.

There were also plenty of good-looking eggplants, include the Glen Quagmire of eggplants… giggity!

One summer vegetable that is going crazy right now is eggplants. There were typical eggplants abound, but we . . . → Read More: Market Day!]]> The greenmarket early on summer mornings is the best. There is just so much, so much variety, and so many rare items that we’ve never seen before. You have to get there early before these more unique offerings sell out, but we do anyway due to the heat and the crowds (plus it’s easier to take picture).

One summer vegetable that is going crazy right now is eggplants. There were typical eggplants abound, but we saw these unique long eggplants, as well as the orange “Turkish eggplants” (no, they aren’t tomatoes!). We bought some so we will let you know how they are. Finally, we saw fairtytale eggplants again (the little ones) but we also saw one that belongs in a fairy tale, that is shaped like a head!

Tomatoes and bell peppers are also everywhere. Some of the heirloom tomatoes are beautiful.

Summer peaches and apricots…

… and cherries everywhere! Cherries are approaching the end of their season in NY, so Lindsay is going nuts canning them today. Look for more posts soon. The dark ones are sweet cherries and the lighter ones are sour cherries, although I would have guessed backwards on that one based on how they look.

Our friends at Northshire Farm had some excellent summer squash and zucchinis. They also had the onion blossoms below. I know, I hear “onion” and “blossom” in the same sentence and I think of a giant fried ball at Outback Steakhouse, but this is not that. The little white flowers have a very strong but unique onion taste… strong but kind of sweet. I’ve been picking at them all afternoon, but we’re trying to come up with a recipe to feature them in.

Anther new one for us was cranberry beans. The sign set up by Lani’s Farm says “LIke Lima beans they have a sweet and nutty flavor with creamy and meeaty textures. Shell and cook for 8-10 minutes.” We already had too much so we skipped them this week, but now that we know about them I want to try them next week.

Keith’s Farm also has it’s famous Rocambole garlic, which right now is halfway between being spring garlic and dries garlic. A few more weeks and those greens will be the dry husks that most people are used to. Once the garlic bulbs get to size they braid the greens of 10+ garlics and hang and dry the bunches (to keep vampires away).

Paffenroth Gardens has to many types of radishes right now: regular red, purple plum, white icicle, and white/pink French / breakfast radishes. Last weekend we tried the breakfast radished, sliced thinly and placed on buttered toast, then salted. They were delicious. I recommend. Finally, we saw the first real corn of the season!

Speaking of the corn, we couldn’t wait. We had it steamed for lunch, with some leftover homemade pizza from last night. In case you’re wondering, the pizza features red spring onions, spring garlic, fresh tomatoes, and purple Amaranth leaves, which were very bitter raw but mellowed out to a nice crunch and brought a really earthy flavor to the pizza.

Today was a great day at the greenmarket because there are so many items just coming out. They are still all small and young, but it’s great to see all these things that have been missing from the market for 9-10 months.

Fairytale eggplants are the best, and great for grilling (Monday!). These are still tiny and they are the first that we’ve seen, but we can’t wait. Also, we saw fresh chickpeas, which . . . → Read More: Market Day!]]>

Today was a great day at the greenmarket because there are so many items just coming out. They are still all small and young, but it’s great to see all these things that have been missing from the market for 9-10 months.

Fairytale eggplants are the best, and great for grilling (Monday!). These are still tiny and they are the first that we’ve seen, but we can’t wait. Also, we saw fresh chickpeas, which are rare. Yes, those fuzzy grape-looking things are chickpeas! Both of these are from Lani’s Farm.

This is also the first of the fennel, and it’s still so young that there are no real “bulbs” on it; it looks like celery. (Non hot-house) bell peppers are also back.

We saw baby kohlrabi, of both the green and purple varieties. Kohlrabi will eventually be available that are the size of softballs, but for now it’s closer to golf balls. But these are tender and great to eat raw with dip.

We are also getting the first of the peaches, apricots, and plums. All of these are a little bit early, but from what we hear the early heat this year is causing everything to appear a few weeks early.

Sour cherries are in full swing, and Lindsay has elaborate plans to can some pie filling. We’ve been buying blueberries to snack on for a few weeks, but they haven’t been perfect until this week. Now they are plump, juicy, sweet, and at their finest. We’ve heard that they will still be around for a few weeks. Also, we saw almost no strawberries this week, but heard that they are in a harvesting lull and will be back again in coming weeks. The farmers rotate their planting and harvests and somehow it all seemed to line up this week.

Cherry tomatoes are here, including the very first Golden / Sweet 100s. In a few weeks those will be as sweet as a berry.

Keith’s Farm is selling whole garlic, meaning the bulb (which is finally full grown) with the stalk and the scape attached! We just got into garlic scapes this year (trying cooking them the ways you would cook asparagus). They are so good. It’s nice getting the various growth stages of garlic, because that something that you don’t see in the supermarket. The garlic you buy there (even at Whole Foods) is static an unchanging. We also noticed that Migliorelli had corn, the that (we think) we have seen, although it doesn’t seem to be at peak yet, because when it is, it will be everywhere.

Northshire Farm had quail and duck eggs. We also bought some honey. They carry a few different types, each made from a different type of pollen. Sp = Spring Flowers, F = Fall Flowers, L = Linden, G = Goldenrod, and I forget what SF stands for. We like the spring flower variety.

I like the Canuco Farm sign, “100% uncertified organic”. Our type of people! Lindsay is also expanding our fire escape garden. It now includes basil, thyme, cilantro, and parsley. We needed to get some potting soil. We drop off our compost every time we visit the greenmarket, and today we got to buy it back in the form of the potting soil that they sell. Buying back our own garbage?!

First, the berries:

Spring onions and spring garlic. Over the past few weeks we have seen garlic and onions sold in various stages of growth. A few weeks ago they looked like scallions with a slightly bigger bulb on the end. Now they look like onions and garlic, but with fresh scallion-like greens sticking . . . → Read More: Market Day!]]> Here are our market pictures from the past two weeks. There are a lot of fresh new things in season.

First, the berries:

Spring onions and spring garlic. Over the past few weeks we have seen garlic and onions sold in various stages of growth. A few weeks ago they looked like scallions with a slightly bigger bulb on the end. Now they look like onions and garlic, but with fresh scallion-like greens sticking out of the top. This week we began to see the first garlic with the green dried into more of a husk. Fresh garlic is interesting to work with before it gets dried. Very flavorful!

Young beets and young carrots, with the greens still attached. We use beet greens like any other bitter leafy green. We don’t use the carrot greens.

Summer squash, which we will be posting a lot about in the coming weeks. This was a summer staple last year!

Fresh lavender:

S&SO always has such a nice haul of root vegetables and onions, and they set it up in such a pretty way. Same with Norwich Meadows and leafy greens.

Snap peas and purple string beans.

By the time we were done yesterday, out basket looked like it was exploding with green. Several people on the street commented (including a woman on Park Avenue S. who was stunned by how pretty it was). When we got home we rewarded ourselves with a snack made up of a thin slice of Cato Corner cheese and Lindsay’s homemade Cranbanerro Jelly. Yum!

Strawberries are here! A number of vendors in Union Square were exploding with them. We picked up a few pints from Hodgson Farm. Lindsay is making and canning a strawberry-lemon concentrate.

Spring onions are everywhere, and very pretty.

Asparagus is still going strong, and tomatoes have begun to appear in recent weeks from places without greenhouses.

Lani’s Farm was selling many interesting greens. We bought some yu choy sum, and will . . . → Read More: Market Day!]]>

Strawberries are here! A number of vendors in Union Square were exploding with them. We picked up a few pints from Hodgson Farm. Lindsay is making and canning a strawberry-lemon concentrate.

Spring onions are everywhere, and very pretty.

Asparagus is still going strong, and tomatoes have begun to appear in recent weeks from places without greenhouses.

Lani’s Farm was selling many interesting greens. We bought some yu choy sum, and will post when we figure out what to do with it. As always, they also had some beautiful swiss chard.

FInally, some peas and flowers:

The weather was nice yesterday, so I was able to bring my camera to the market. It is definitely spring now!

Ramps have been in for a few weeks but are still going strong. I read the article in the NY Times about how ramps are being over-harvested. I asked our sources at the market about it. They said that some ramps are cultivated by farmers, and those are sustainable. Others are harvested in . . . → Read More: Market Day]]>

The weather was nice yesterday, so I was able to bring my camera to the market. It is definitely spring now!

Ramps have been in for a few weeks but are still going strong. I read the article in the NY Times about how ramps are being over-harvested. I asked our sources at the market about it. They said that some ramps are cultivated by farmers, and those are sustainable. Others are harvested in the wild by foragers, and ramps have become such a hot commodity in April each year that more and more people are doing just that. Some of those sources are being depleted. The bottom line is: if you’re going to buy ramps, ask where they came from and try to support the farmers.

This was the first big week for asparagus, and it was everywhere!

Ramps and asparagus:

Broccoli Raab has been around for a week or two but Migliorelli farm is still selling piles and piles of it. Supposedly the raab will be gone soon; it only has a short window.

Broccoli Raab:

And here are some other pictures that I took while I was waiting my turn for some Cato Corner Farm cheese. Roaming Acres has the stand next door to Cato. They sell only ostrich products (eggs, meat, jerky). My friend Brian bough some ostrich steaks there the other week and said they were delicious.

Ostrich eggs and ostrich jerky:

And here is the Cato Corner cheese. A small chunk of the aged Bloomsday wrapped in a raw ramp leaf is delicious!

Cheese:

The point of our Market Day! posts is to catalog what’s available at our local market from week to week throughout the year. We also just like posting nice photos.

The Union Square greenmarket is extensive, including farms from New York, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Western New England (Vermont, Connecticut, and Western Massachusetts). It’s also indicative of similar climates at similar latitudes.

We haven’t done a Market Day post in a while because . . . → Read More: Market Day: First Signs of (Greenhouse) Spring]]>

The point of our Market Day! posts is to catalog what’s available at our local market from week to week throughout the year. We also just like posting nice photos.

The Union Square greenmarket is extensive, including farms from New York, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania, and Western New England (Vermont, Connecticut, and Western Massachusetts). It’s also indicative of similar climates at similar latitudes.

We haven’t done a Market Day post in a while because nothing much has changed at the market in months. And that will continue to be the case for another 4-6 weeks. However, yesterday we saw the very first signs of spring (albeit most likely helped along by a few greenhouses).

Norwich Meadows Farm has been back at the market for a few weeks. Recently they started selling baby spinach and two forms of kale. It’s nice to see greens at the market again, but we suspect that these were at least helped along by a portable greenhouse (which can be placed directly over the soil bed), if not an actual greenhouse or hothouse.

Given their location in far Western New York State, maybe they were spared some of our worst snow. These greens are hearty and will grow as soon as they are given then chance by nature, but we’re still skeptical. As the first out of the gate with the greens, their prices are steep. We’ll stop by and ask them next week about how these were grown, if we have time:

Fiori di Fenice sells flowers, which are definitely greenhouse flowers, but they were such a nice change from winter that we had to buy some of those orange tulips:

The tulips at home:

Technically, the market is open all year. Many . . . → Read More: Market Day!]]> Today was a melancholy market day. Because both Christmas and New Year’s Day fall on Saturdays this year, today was the last major Saturday greenmarket at Union Square until the springtime. Every conversation between customer and vendor consisted of some variation of “when are you back?” or “how long will you be gone?” Usually these questions are about the produce. Today, they were about the farmers themselves.

Technically, the market is open all year. Many of our vendors will be back on January 8th (particularly for meat, dairy, poultry, etc.). But it’s sad to know that we’re saying goodbye to most of our favorite produce farmers for a while. The next time we go to the Saturday market in early January, it will be half the size it was today, which is already half the size it was in the fall. Luckily there will still be more than enough for us to get by.

I recently finished Keith Stewart’s book, which is a collection of short stories about his life on the farm (I did not expect a farmer to be such a poignant writer). After reading about their market days (awake at 3:10am, home at 9:30pm), I know that the farmers deserve a winter break. I also know that it’s not spent lounging. It’s when they tackle their bookkeeping, their planning for the coming spring, and a million other things that there just isn’t time for the other 9 months. I wish them all a good respite.

Keith Stewart’s farm is one of our absolute favorites. His sign (left) made us very sad. Gorzynski Ornery Farm usually has a huge booth, but it has shrunk down to just a few tables (right). On the bright side, let’s talk about things that we will be able to get all winer:

Parsnips and Rutabagas from Windfall Farms.

Watermelon radishes are great for roasting and look really cool.

Roasting potatoes and celeriac will be available from storage all winter.

Our preferred lamb vendor, Catskill Merino Sheep Farm, will continue to sell cuts of lamb, as well as yarn for knitting the extra sweaters we may need to shop there this winter!

They also sell a big variety of lamb sausage.

We spoke to the family from Northshire Farm. They are going to stick out the winter. Gohod for them! They introduced us to kohlrabi a few weeks back and had great Tuscan kale. The pictures above are of their Hubbard squash (huge!) and cabbage.

A variety of squash and a giant yellow squash of unknown name and origin.

Herbs and mixed cabbages.

Bulich mushrooms will be around all winter. Here is a pictures of their portobellos.

More pretty squash and some pickled items, which will continue to be available.

Sprouts will still be available from Hudson Valley Organics, although without any salad greens to use them with, I don’t know what the point is.

Now we get into the “cheating” of local eating: greenhouses and hydroponics. Shushan Valley always has tremendous looking stuff, and those tomatoes look out of this world this time of year. But growing in a hothouse is much more resource intensive, so a purist wouldn’t “really” count it as local. And you pay a lot for the privilege of eating such a great looking local tomato in the winter. Disclosure: we did buy some great basil from them today.

Migliorelli is one of the two big, conventional (non-organic) growers that will be there throughout the winter. Now they are also apparently freezing some of their summer harvest and offering it in the winter. This is the first time we’ve seen that and we think it’s a great idea. Ronnybrook dairy will be here all winter as well, and they make a killer hot chocolate with their milk. It’s a must-buy.